The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has claimed that wanted civil servant AbdulRasheed Maina bought a $2 million house in Abuja.
The mansion was allegedly acquired by Maina when he was the chairman of the controversial Presidential Task Force Team on Pension Reforms.
The civil servant was declared wanted by the EFCC in November 2015 for alleged fraud.
However, Maina surprisingly resurfaced this month as an acting director in the Ministry of Interior.
An EFCC fact-sheet shows that Maina was under probe for multiple allegations, including fraudulent biometric contracts, which resulted in the mismanagement of over N2billion of pension funds and acquisition of choice mansions in Abuja.
According to the document, an investigative team led by Habibu Aliyu, an EFCC official, uncovered how Maina allegedly paid $2million for a property at 10, Amisi Musa Street in Jabi Lake, Abuja.
Part of the fact sheet says: “Our findings confirmed that he paid $2million for the house in cash in one day when he was the chairman of the Pension Reform Task Team.
“Investigation showed that the house was sold to him in June 2012 by one Adamu Modibbo. It is located at 10, Amisi Musa Street, Jabi Lake Area. The house was bought at the time he was in charge of pension reform.
“The EFCC marked the house as a property under investigation but all the marks were removed and the walls repainted. Maina has other properties which he acquired as an Assistant Director in the Federal Civil Service.”
The fact-sheet gives an insight into attempts to bring Maina to book, including when he relocated to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The document stated that: “Maina was declared wanted by the EFCC. On November 11, 2015, the EFCC wrote to the Inspector-General of Police, with an attention to the Commissioner of Police (INTERPOL), requesting for the publication of Abdulrasheed Maina on INTERPOL Red Alert.
“The letter sought assistance for the arrest of Maina who has a fraud case, FHC/ABJ/ CR/, requesting for the publication of Abdulrasheed Maina on INTERPOL Red Alert.
“The letter sought assistance for the arrest of Maina who has a fraud case, FHC/ABJ/ CR/97/ 2015 dated July 10, 2015.”
The nation quoted a source as saying that this INTERPOL step was taken barely a week after Ibrahim Magu took over as the Acting Chairman of EFCC.
“It will be interesting to tell you that when we sent the letter to the INTERPOL initially, it got missing, but unknown to them, we had the acknowledged copy. We were undeterred; we had series of correspondences with the INTERPOL.
“After many months, on January 12, 2016, the commission received a response from INTERPOL acknowledging the receipt of the letter to place Maina on Red Alert.
“But INTERPOL requested for more information to take some steps. This was the position in INTERPOL while the EFCC went ahead with the trial of Maina and others.”
It was learnt that the EFCC was on the trail of Maina.
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